Lost Obsession
by angelwings2400
Summary: What is a ghost without an obsession? Just an empty shell of something that is fading? Or will these new people in his life be able to save him before that happens?
1. Prologue: Finding Your Obsession

The pain that lingered in his heart wouldn't leave. It's agonizing. It's like someone ripped out half his heart, while the remains were slowly beginning to give in to the depression that already enveloped his mind.

What was wrong with him? He'd seen plenty of people get over deaths of loved ones, he'd heard of people who bounced back from traumatic experiences worse than his own.

This was…different. It wasn't just a traumatic experience, his entire drive was gone. His drive to live…his obsession.

That must be it. Now that his obsession was gone, he no longer had a purpose in the world. He would fade away, just like every other ghost. But…something held him back. His human half…

What was the point in staying here if his ghost half had given up on continuing, and his human half no longer had the people to encourage him to keep going?

And the only one to turn to…would lead to his nightmare coming true…

No. He would kill himself before turning into that.

How easy it would be…he could freeze himself in his own ice and wait until the ice froze his brain. Then he would no longer be a danger to society, the world, himself…he could finally join his friends and family.

Yes. He would do this. For the world…and for himself.

His hands tingled, ice forming in them. The ice slowly crept over his body. As the ice was forming over his head, memories flashed behind his closed eyes.

The feel of a HAZMAT suit as someone came in to hug him.

A flash of red hair and a knowing, teasing smile.

The sound of pencils sharpening and a concerned voice.

A thick pair of glasses and a friendly punch to the arm.

A pair of beautiful amethyst eyes, gazing at him with concern.

"_Danny, you need to be more careful. I'll be here to patch you up, but I don't want you to die on me, got it?"_

The ice shattered, and he fell to his hands and knees. He couldn't do it. They wouldn't want him to end it this way. Sam's voice was echoing in his head. She had said that not long before she had died.

"Sam…I won't do it. You'd probably never forgive me." He felt a tear crawl its way down his cheek.

He would linger for as long as he could. It's really not like he could avoid the inevitable. Without an obsession, he would fade out of existence.

He would have to move to a different location. Too many people looking for him. It didn't matter where. He would just go in one direction for a while, stay a bit, and move on.

He would never come back to Amity Park again. As he left the city limits, he felt a very small, barely noticeable weight leave his shoulders.


	2. Chapter 1: Hero Complex

**There will be an OC in this, but she's not really that important. I just needed Danny to be living in Jump. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or Teen Titans. **

* * *

"_It's no use, Danny. I'm __**inevitable."**_

"_No, I stopped you, you can't be here, I—"_

"_Oh Danny, when will you learn? As long as __**you're**__ here, __**I'm **__here; haunting your nightmares. "_

He woke up with a jolt. Sitting up straight, he checked his surroundings. No destroyed Nasty Burger, no Dark Dan. Just the familiar damp cave he'd been staying in while he stayed by the West Coast. It wasn't much to look at, if you ignore all the ice.

He had control over his ice powers; when he was conscious. But when he was sleeping, his ice core usually naturally took over and responded to the dreams he had. If it was a good dream, his surroundings would be unaffected, leaving with him only a calming chill that he had grown accustomed to ever since he got his ice powers. If he had a nightmare, however, anything in the vicinity would become covered in ice, trapping him in a protective enclosure. He couldn't help it; he went on instinct when he was in a nightmare.

Which, of course, happened every night.

The giant hole in his heart hadn't healed, though he was able to cope with it more. He was able to do everyday things without becoming extremely depressed because everything reminded him of his friends and family.

Not that he wasn't depressed already.

"_Roof!"_

Danny looked at the entrance of the cave, seeing the green dog wagging its tale.

He smiled. "Hey, Cujo," he said as the little dog jumped in his lap. Cujo had been visiting him very frequently; which made him feel better. He scratched the hyper dog's ears, happy that his old friend could keep him company.

He had to go into the city today. He was out of food again, and he could only so long without food. Longer than a normal human, but he still had a limit. He didn't like to steal, but oftentimes it was inevitable.

Inevitable. He really hated that word.

* * *

Jump City was…diverse, he decided. There were many different people inhabiting the large city; the normal innocent looking citizen, the normal thugs, and the people who looked in-between. The two sides of the city looked like opposites; one for the thugs, the other for 'the innocent'. And it was all being watched over by the Titans Tower.

Yeah, the Teen Titans. The heroes of the city; they had taken over not long before he arrived. Apparently they'd made quite the performance; something about lizard monsters? Sounds far-fetched, but not as far-fetched as a ghost boy fighting off other ghosts to protect a small town in Illinois.

He doesn't really give the young heroes much thought. If they decide to become heroes and get spat at for it, it's on them. His hero days were over, if you could even call them hero days. It was mostly just him fighting ghosts and getting chased, framed, and ridiculed for it. Not that it mattered anymore.

A scream pulled him out of his reveries. He instantly went on guard. _Looks like the instinct never quite goes away completely,_ he mentally groaned. He pinpointed the scream, and his eyes fell on a terrified woman and three thugs.

Mugging a woman? Not uncommon, but still…that was low. Then he noticed her arms wrapped around her stomach. Was she injured? No…pregnant. Make that _really _low.

He jumped into action before he really thought about it. Which was a mistake. Next thing he knew, the three men were all on the ground unconscious. Dammit, rushing into things never ends well! Now he'll probably just make them angry at the woman, putting her in danger.

Speaking of which…

He held his hand out to the woman, who stared at it with fearful eyes. She was breathing heavily, her hands still on her stomach.

"It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you," Danny said. She relaxed a bit, taking his hand. She looked like she was in her thirties, with a long dress and a jacket to make it easier to more around with her bulging stomach.

She still looked fearful. "How…what did you do to them?" she asked, looking at Danny with wonder in her wide eyes.

"They weren't very smart or skilled, just big and bulky. It was easy to sneak up on them," he said, a smirk forming on his lips. "Let's go, before they wake up."

They stepped around the unconscious men, and headed toward a nearby park.

"Hey…um…," the woman started, looking less scared. "Thank you. For saving me."

Smiling, he said "It was no big deal. I don't think I could stand myself if I just stood by while two lives were in jeopardy."

She blinked, and then smiled while resting a hand on her stomach. "My name is Martha. What is your name?" she asked.

"Danny. Nice to meet you," he said. "Do you think you can get home? I don't want to be bothering you."

"Oh, yes, it's not very far from here." She stopped, looking at Danny. Martha had probably guessed by now that he was homeless.

_Great, _he thought. _Now I'll either be pitied or tossed aside._

"Could you come with me? I mean, you saved me and my child, and I'm not the kind of person who likes to be indebted to others." With that, Martha grabbed the surprised Danny's wrist and pulled him with her to her apartment.

Next thing he knew, he was listening to the story of Martha Kreps, who fell in love to a deceitful guy who took off as soon as he learned of her pregnancy. He felt sorry for her and told her had run away from his home. She didn't ask why, thankfully. Martha was still shaken up from the attempted mugging, but she did her best to hide it. She was bursting at the seams, and really she just needed someone to talk to, or even listen. Being alone in a small apartment didn't help.

"You could stay here, if you want."

Danny looked up at Martha, shocked. She just met him and she was offering to let him stay?

"I-I couldn't-I mean-what-I'd be totally imposing-"

"Of course not. You'll be staying with me, and you'll 'volunteer' at my restaurant."

Oh. Didn't see that coming.

"But still—"

"No buts," she said. "You don't want me to call social services, do you?" He shut his mouth at this. He really didn't want to deal with social services again; half-ghost or not. And was she threatening him?! He saved her life today!

"Loo, Danny," Martha said, a solemn expression on her face. "You saved my life and my _child's _life today. So are you going to accept my offer, or not?"

He swallowed. "When do we start?"

* * *

**The next chapter will be when Robin and Danny meet. If this story gets confusing at any time, just tell me. **


	3. Chapter 2: Sewers

**Robin and Danny meet in the sewer. I'm not really sure if sewers have a current, but this sewer does. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or Teen Titans**

* * *

Falling into a sewer was _not_ the first thing that came to his mind when he thought of his death. Perhaps dying at the hands of an enemy, but falling? You've got to be kidding. A loud splash and a sharp pain on his back signified he hit the murky sewer water; and with all the rubble and concrete that fell down with him, he was sure to drown if he didn't take action. After all, he had to uphold the name "Boy Wonder."

Swimming diagonally against the current, Robin tried to make his way to the edge. He was about to grab it when a searing pain erupted in his side. He clutched his ribcage by instinct and continued with the current, bruising himself along the way. It was only until he ran into something hard with his head did he lose consciousness.

* * *

After that, blurring images popped up as he tried to regain consciousness, but only to lose it soon after. He thought he heard a voice here and there, but he wasn't sure.

When he finally was completely awake, he was very much in pain. His head was throbbing, his body hurt, and his throat was raw, as if he'd been coughing for the past hour. Robin then noticed he wasn't alone.

Quickly, he sat up, but then immediately regretted it. He was extremely sore, and the head rush from sitting up to quickly made his headache even worse.

"Oh, you're awake," a voice said. When Robin studied the speaker, he was surprised to see that it was a teenager probably only a little older than Beast Boy. He had black hair, similar to his own, falling shaggily in his pale blue eyes. Almost too pale; they reminded him of ice.

"I wouldn't move around too much if I were you," the mystery teen said. "You took quite a beating, and it doesn't help that you nearly drowned."

"How…how did I get out?" Robin asked rather unintelligently with a raspy voice.

"I got you out. I was already in the sewer when you fell; I saw you trying to swim, and…then getting bashed around quite a bit." He sighed and scratched the back of his neck. "I'm sorry I couldn't help you earlier, I was still kind of in shock from when the road collapsed."

"I see…" Robin said, a bit suspicious of the boy. What was he doing down in the sewers _alone?_ And how did he even get him out of that current?

"What's your name?" Robin asked, determined to solve the new mystery.

"It's Danny…and I'm guessing you're Robin?"

"Yeah…why were you in the sewers, Danny?"

Danny looked surprised for a moment, then recovered. He then responded, "I was looking for something. It fell down here earlier; near the spot where you fell actually…I'm probably going to have a harder time finding it now, though…"

"What were you looking for?" Robin asked, getting more curious and was still suspicious.

Danny glared for a short moment, and then sighed. "Look, it's personal, alright? Let's just focus on getting out of here. You've been out of it for a few hours; can you stand?" He stood up, extending a had to Robin.

Robin nodded, disappointed that Danny shut him out. He took his hand and stood up, his body screaming in protest. He ignored the pain though, and looked around.

"We aren't where I fell," he said, forming plans to get back to his team. Wait his team! Someone had set a trap for them, that was for sure…were they okay—

"Yeah, the water carried you for quite a bit. We're not that far, though. I think there's an exit close by."

As Robin followed Danny, he continued to observe him. He was skinny, but had some subtle muscle tone. His clothes were dirty, and ripped at some places. Could've been from the road collapsing, but it could've been something else.

_Whatever, you need to concentrate on finding the team. You can do research on Danny once you're back in the tower. _

The exit was farther than his pained body's liking. He grimaced, trying to ignore the remaining throbbing in his head. The exit was a small gated hole, probably connecting to a street above. His hand went to his waist for a grappling hook, only to grab at nothing. His belt was gone.

"Dammit!"

"What's wrong?" Danny asked, startled at Robin's outburst.

"My belt's missing. It's too sturdy to break and fall off, so _someone,_" he said, scrutinizing Danny, "must have stolen it."

"_I _didn't steal it, if that's what you're implying," Danny said, accompanied with a glare. "Besides, we don't need it to get out."

After saying that, he did something unexpected. He put two fingers to his lips, and whistled. Not the usual ear-splitting whistle Robin had heard from others, but a five not melody that seemed oddly familiar.

"Hunger Games."

"What?" Robin asked, confused.

"That's the tune I whistled, it was from Hunger Games. Hold on, I think I hear him coming."

Robin was about to ask who, but light, fast-paced steps made their way to his ears, followed by a bark. A white dog came to the grate, looking down on them while wagging its tiny tail.

"A dog?" Robin asked a 'you've got to be kidding me' look in his hidden eyes. "How is a dog supposed to get us out?"

"Well, Mr. Pessimistic, I'll show you." Danny then looked back up at the dog, saying "Cujo, _iri ricevi helpon!_"

'Cujo', then barked and scampered away. Robin studied Danny, wondering about the language he just spoke. It almost sounded like some form of Latin, but he didn't know.

"What did you tell him? And what language was that?"

"I told him to go get help. And that was Esperanto," Danny said, slightly smirking.

"Esperanto…?" Why on Earth would this kid know Esperanto? He then realized that he grew up speaking Romani, which isn't exactly common. "Will it actually get help?"

"Yes, _he _will." _Oh great, another Beast Boy. _

"S-sorry, is he really that well trained?" Robin asked, holding in a snicker.

"Yeah, that was a pretty basic command. He could probably understand it in English, but he's more trained with Esperanto."

"**Danny! **Why are you in the sewer?!"

The two looked up to see a very distraught looking woman looking down at them.

Danny grinned. "Hey Martha! I'll explain later, can you get us out of here?"

Martha pursed her lips, but agreed. About ten minutes later, they were out on the street. Robin then felt a small amount of panic rise in him when he noticed how late it had gotten.

"It's nighttime…" Robin said, thinking about how much time had passed since he'd seen his friends.

"Wait…you're Robin, right?" Martha asked. He nodded. "You'd better get goin'; your Tower just got turned into a giant H!" He stared at her blankly, not getting what she was saying.

"I think what she means is your friends are in trouble," Danny said.

He clenched his jaw, anger setting in. While he was 'sleeping' in the sewers, his friends were fighting! He needed to get to them.

"Thanks, Danny," Robin said quickly, eager to be on his way. He nodded at Martha. "Martha."

He took off, ignoring the pain that remained. He had to help his friends.

* * *

**If you're wondering why Cujo isn't green, you'll get to find out next chapter. Possibly. **


	4. Chapter 3 Second Meetings

_Dammit. Dammit. DAMMIT!_ Danny thought as he flew around, calming his nerves as he navigated through the night sky. He had just left Martha's restaurant; escaping the long lecture by said woman as to why he was in the sewers with _Robin _from the _Teen Titans _instead of on his shift. And frankly, he didn't know either.

He hadn't lied when he said he was looking for something. He had accidentally dropped the ring he gave to Sam into the sewer, and was down there looking for it. Luckily, he had found it before the street _collapsed _on him. Okay, so may mean that he _did _lie to Robin a little, but really didn't want to explain the ring to anyone, and it served him right after nearly giving him a heart attack.

He really must have the worst luck in the world. Right when he thought he had quit the hero business, his ever-so-bothering complex kicked in and he helped Robin. And with his _awesome_ luck, the protégé of the world's greatest detective would get curious.

"GRRAAAAAHHH!" he yelled, feeling ectoblasts form in his hands. "Why does the universe DESPISE ME?!"

He let loose the blasts, liking how the burning feeling spread from his fingers to the night air, taking some of his anger with it.

"I should probably get back. Martha might need some—"he stopped talking to himself, glancing at the Titans Tower. Or what used to be the Titans Tower. Martha hadn't been delusional when she said it had been turned into an H. The add-ons were yellow—and strangely beehive-like. In one day, the beloved and respected Teen Titans had been taken down, their leader missing.

He narrowed his eyes. He could definitely relate, but most times he could get out of the mess alive. And he had friends to help him, except with—

_No, bad thoughts, bad thoughts. Don't think about that now, _he thought, slapping himself. He looked at the tower again, fearing at what his thoughts would lead to him doing. His shoulders slumped, his hand shifting through his white locks. His thoughts flashed back to how the Titans had been so easily beaten before.

"Dammit. Dammit. DAMMIT!" he shouted once again, flying toward the tower.

* * *

When Danny got his first look at the people who supposedly beat the Titans, he couldn't stop the thought: _What is the world coming to?_

The three were lounging in the main room, oblivious to the invisible ghost kid peering in through the window. He didn't want to go very near; the small bratty-looking one might have an energy scanner that could pick up on his ghost signature. But thanks to his enhanced hearing, he could hear them fine.

When he saw that the bratty looking one throw a Dumpty Humpty CD to the floor, dismissing it as snot, he was ready to strangle the little termite. Then he saw a robotic hand that was mounted on the wall start to twitch. And proceeded to watch as it scampered off the wall, sneaking to the computers.

So the Titans weren't as stupid as he thought. Well, whatever their plan was, it looked like they could use some sort of diversion. He smirked.

He raised his hands, his eyes glowing in concentration. Telekinesis was hard, and he hadn't quite mastered it yet. He concentrated harder as the robotic limb triggered some sort of alarm. He smiled as he saw the CDs shoot out at the teens, and the cupboards opening and closing. He remembered stories of haunted houses with similar things happening. He might not be very original, but hey, he was a ghost.

He stopped when he saw the Titans make their second move. He saw the hand latch onto the bratty kid, an ominous claw pulling the girl through the ceiling, and the large teen get blasted into another room.

Well, they seemed like they had it under control. He could leave. He rubbed his temples, having a headache from overusing the new power. It had really drained him.

He flew to Martha's apartment behind the pizza place, transforming back into Fenton after checking his surroundings. When he opened the door, he was faced with a still slightly steaming Martha.

"Where were you? You just up and left after I finished chewing you out," she said, raising an eyebrow.

"Oh, nowhere. Just…letting off some steam." His face fell slightly, Martha's behavior reminding him of his mother when he came in late, appearing disheveled and exhausted.

Martha caught his expression, dropping the subject. He had found out that she was very easy to be around, because she knew when not to ask.

He smiled at her, waling over the room she had provided. He flopped on the bed, his run-ins with the Titans running through his mind. Hopefully, he wouldn't have another encounter with them. His small acts of heroing brought back painful memories.

He sighed, praying that the next day would be uneventful.

* * *

Again, why does the universe despise him so very much?

There he stood, with a notepad in hand, waiting to take the Teen Titans order.

He couldn't stop the odd phrase going to his head: _butter biscuits. _

"Danny?" Robin said. "What…what are you doing here?"

Crap. Crapcrapcrapcr—"I…erm-work here," he said, not wanting to explain his 'volunteering' agreement he had with Martha. "It's…uh…good to see you guys are okay after that whole thing with those new villains."

"Robin, you know this guy?" the green kid asked.

"Yeah, he helped me while I was in the sewers yesterday. I didn't know you worked here, Danny," Robin said, with an inspecting gaze.

"Whoa, so _that's _how you got out. Man you should'a' told us. I'm Cyborg, by the way," the robotic, dark skinned hero said. "You already know Robin, the green dork over there is Beast Boy, and this Starfire, and Raven."

He nodded at them, a nervous smile on his face. The girl named Starfire smiled brightly, looking like she was about to ask him something. He cut her off before she could, saying: "Hey, erm…so, what can I get you?" Danny said nervously.

"Of course, we'll get the Meat Lovers'—"

"NO WE'RE NOT!" Beast Boy said, cutting off Cyborg. "I'm not having meat, dude!"

The argument that followed felt like it was trying to freeze his insides. All he could see were Sam and Tucker, arguing about meat and vegetarians just like old times. He stiffened, trying to get ahold of himself. He failed to notice Raven tensing as well, giving him a strange look.

"W-well, why don't you split one pizza, meant and v-vegetarian and the rest of you can get whatever you want," he said in a cracked voice. He clenched his teeth, trying to get his emotions under control.

The other teens noticed his discomfort, but they all thought it was because of being near their fight. "Sorry dude, that'd be great," Beast Boy said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his head.

He took their order, and hurriedly left. He quickly gave the order to Martha, who was behind the counter in the kitchen.

He took a deep breath. And a few more. He felt his ice core become restless, his ice powers rising. The temperature lowered several degrees, which calmed him down a bit. He managed to calm himself down a bit, and tended to other customers.

When he faced the Titans again, he had a fake smile plastered on his face, carrying the two pizzas. He made interaction as quick as possible, and got the hell out of there.

* * *

"Robin," Raven said when Danny was out of earshot. "We need to talk."


	5. Chapter 4: Fanning Flames

**This is the longest chapter I've written so far, I hope you like it. **

**Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or Teen Titans. **

* * *

"What did you learn about Danny?" Robin asked Raven. They were back in the Tower, having left the pizza place to discuss the mysterious teen.

"Nothing," she replied, her eyes on the ground.

"What do you mean, 'nothing'?" Robin said, frustrated.

"I mean I couln't get anything off him. I couldn't read his thoughts, or feel any emotion."

"Is that even possible…?"

"Well apparently, it is," Raven said, her monotonous voice raising a fraction. "And the strange thing is, the one time I did pick up his emotions, they were overpowering. I had to put up my strongest mental barriers so I wouldn't collapse."

"Collapse?"

She nodded. "Sadness couldn't even begin to describe what he was feeling. It was like someone had just died, and the grief and depression were magnified tenfold."

Robin looked at the ground, deep in thought. He knew what it was like to lose someone close more than most, but what did Danny lose? What oculd have happened to make him feel like this?

"Maybe he's a meta," he said. "That could be why you couldn't get in his head, and why his emotions were magnified." It would also explain how Danny had gotten him out of the sewers.

"Maybe…" Raven said. That would provide the explanation for the mental blocks, but what about the surge of emotions? She had never felt anything like it, except…

_It couldn't be, _she thought, thinking back at the encounters she had with the supernatural. She had watched a ghost pass on right in from of her, feeling its last feeling with it because eof her empathic abilities. Its emotions had been magnified tenfold as well, but she had only felt happiness and peace.

She dismissed the thought, common sense kicking in. There were easy characteristics that you could use to identify a ghost. Danny was human, even though she sensed something…off. That would just further prove he was in fact a metahuman.

"If he is a meta, what are we going to do about it?" Raven asked.

"Just keep an eye on him, for now," Robin said, starting to pace. "He seems as if he's just trying to live a normal life. We probably shouldn't interfere too much; and we already have are hands full already, with this new villain Slade, and the mystery helper from last night."

The 'mystery helper' had apparently distracted the H.I.V.E. while Cyborg was working on the Tower defenses. The team had originally thought it was Raven, but her denies and video footage showed it was someone else off camera.

Even though it appeared that the person was aiding them, it unnerved Robin that someone could get through the Tower's security. And with the knowledge of a new villain, Slade, he had been up all night trying to dig up some information on him. He'd even forgot to look up Danny, as well.

Even if he had, what was there to look up? He didn't even know the kid's last name. He looked about a year older than Beast Boy. And if he was a meta, he might've even covered up his past—

Wait. A mysterious teenager, who might be a meta-human, helping Robin out of the sewers the same day an unknown person helps them out at the Tower.

Coincidence?

He didn't believe in coincidences.

* * *

"This place is getting extremely popular," Danny said as he finally flipped the 'closed' sign on the window. There had been a ton of customers today; he was pretty exhausted.

"Yeah, I know!" Martha said excitingly. She was in the kitchen, cleaning the counters. "There's a rumor going around that this is the Teen Titan's favorite hangout!"

Great. Now he not only had to avoid the Titans, but now he had to avoid them _while he was taking their orders. _That wasn't going to be fun.

"We'll have to start hiring more people, we can't run the place with just the two of us," Martha said as she washed the flour off her hands.

"We're hardly running it as it is," Danny said. "I've never been a waitor before; the entire job is complete and utter chaos."

"It's _organized chaos, _Danny. Which is why we're going to hire more people; you might even be able to work here part-time, too."

_That _he needed. If he could make this job part-time, he could get another _paying _job, and be actually able to buy things. While the food and bed Martha probided was nice, his clothes were in desperate need of replacing. He hadn't exactly thought that he would _grow _while he had been packing to run away.

_Ugh, stop thinking about it! You'll only get more depressed. _

"Danny?"

"Wha'?" he said, his head jerking toward Martha.

She sighed, annoyed. "I said, I'm thinking about getting a car. What do you recommend that's cheap, old, and functional?"

He thought for a moment. It would be good if she had a car; she was constantly complaining about all the complete frootloops on the bus. He didn't know too much about cars, apart from the monster trucks that he and Tucker were obsessed with.

"Anything that's labeled cheap and old, really. As long as its not a smart car," Danny said.

Martha snorted. "Do I look like I could _fit _in a smart car?"

* * *

A week went by, and surpriseingly it was almost _normal _for Danny. As normal as anything could get in his life.

He could definitely feel someone watching him now, and no doubt it was the Titans. He hoped they hadn't connected the dots with his telekinesis. He didn't want them to think that he was some sort of hero.

No. He was not a hero. A hero doesn't let their loved ones die in an explosion because they weren't fast enough.

The restaurant had really changed. Martha brought in a few decorations (as tacky as they might be) and hired more employees. His 'volunteer work' had been changed to part-time, and he was working on getting a job at a café down the treet. Soon he'll be able to wear something other than Martha's ex-boyfriend's old clothes, which were too big on him.

"Danny, come on."

He looked at Martha, and at the 'car' she was standing next to. It had to be the saddest thing he'd ever seen.

"I know you said old and worthless, but isn't this a bit much?" Danny said, raising an eyebrow.

"Worthless?! No no no, I said cheap, old and functional. And this, my dear freeloader, is the epitome of al three."

"Freeloader…" _Freeloader my ass! Does she know how many tables I've catered?! _"Whatever. Is it actually functional?" he asked skeptically.

"Of course it is!" She got in the car, and started the engine. It backfired a few times, and then started up. "Come on, Dan!"

He flinched when she said Dan. "P-please, don't call me Dan. Just Danny."

She looked surprised for a second, then smiled. "Suit yourself. Now get in, I got a baby shower to get to."

"A baby shower…?" he said, horrified. "You're taking me with you to a _baby shower?!" _

"No silly, I wouldn't bring a man to a baby shower. It's on the other side of the bridge, at my mother's house. There's a lot more sights there, so I'll give you a twenty and you can entertain yourself."

Danny smiled. "Really?"

"Yup."

"Let's go!"

He shuffled into the clunker, briefly noticing the overcast weather.

"It's cloudy," he said.

"Yeah, it was freezing this morning," Martha said.

"Freezing?" Danny said, raising an eyebrow. "Just below 60 degrees is _not _freezing."

"Well-I-you know-it was cold!" she said, flustered.

He rolled his eyes. "Californians."

The rest of the car ride was relatively silent, apart from the extremely loud engine. They were just crossing the bridge when a deafening BOOM met their ears.

They jumped, surprised at the loud noise.

"What was that?" Martha said.

"Might've been the car," Danny said.

She was about to answer back, when a bright flash went by, cutting some of the cables that held the bridge up.

"Oh man…" Danny said as the cars in front of them came to a stop.

"What's happening?" Martha asked while Danny looked around.

"Oh man, oh man, GET OUT OF THE CAR!" he yelled as he saw two figures shoot what it looked to be electricity at them.

They quickly ran out the car, Danny getting shocked a little. He hardly even noticed; he had gotten tased and electrocuted so many times he had a bit of an immunity to it.

"Who are those guys?" Martha wheezed, her pregnancy making it hard to move fast as they dove behind the clunker.

"I don't—" he cut off, seeing the Teen Titans. They all watched the brawl ensue between them, seeing the two people put up a good fight against the team of five. Finally, the two left the bridge, leaving everyone confused.

"Hey Danny?" Martha asked.

"Yeah?"

"You're hair's standing on end," she said, he lips turning up a bit, but her posture remained stiff.

"Aw, man," he said as he tried to flatten his hair. He was unsuccessful.

"Danny," a male voice said behind him.

He turned around, looking at masked eyes and spiky hair. "R-Robin…" he said nervously.

Robin looked at him, then glanced at Martha. Then he smirked, saying "Take care of her."

Then he ran off with his friends.

Danny narrowed his eyes. Just what did he know?

* * *

They eventually did get across the bridge, Martha went to her baby shower and gave him her promised twenty dollars.

But right now his mind was occupied elsewhere.

Because in the forest right near where he was, a giant _fire monster _was burning everything in sight.

Huh. Not too many people have the opportunity to say that.

The Titans were there as well, trying their best to put out the fires while fighting the Thunder Brothers, the two he'd seen at the bridge. They weren't doing very well.

Danny as currently in a war in his mind. Should he help Would he even be of help?

He noticed that their attacks never seemed to work. It would seem pretty obvious, since the guy was made of _fire. _How does that even work?!

He really shouldn't be questioning it. It probably made as much sense as being alive and dead at the same time.

What they really needed right then was about a billion gallons of water. His eyes flickered to the house Martha was in, and he made up his mind.

Water would be hard to acquire. Ice on the other hand…

Transforming into Phantom, he flew invisibly up to the scene. He decided to fashion an ice helmet, so that he wouldn't show his white hair. It was too easy to recognize, and if Boy Wonder started to connect the dots, he'd be screwed.

Turning visible, he formed ice around the monster. The Titans and Thunder Brothers stopped in surprise, but quickly resumed their fight.

The flame monster was, apparently, hot enough to melt his ice. Which is to say, _really _hot. His 'ghost ice' was made of ectoplasm, just made unique by controlling his ice core.

_So if I put a little more ectoplasm in it, _he thought, _it'll be harder to melt. _

It would take a lot of energy out of him, but he'd have to manage. He formed more ice, blocking the monster's path. He noticed that the Titans had stopped fighting, the Thunder Brothers nowhere in sight. They wer now all trying to delay the flame monster and put out the fires.

A small raindrop fell on his hand, making him jump. He looked up, seeing what he believed to be the Thunder Brothers. They were controlling the storm, synchronizing dances to make it almost look beautiful.

It became very beautiful when the flame monster started to die. Or would it be 'go out'? He set his feet to the ground, feeling a wave of nausea but ignored it.

"Ghost."

He turned his head toward Raven, who had spoken. Her teammates looked puzzled, but her gaze didn't waver. She had a distrusting look in her violet eyes.

_Sam's eyes. _

Danny closed his eyes momentarily, pushing the memory aside. Raven was _not _Sam. He forced himself to look into her eyes once more, saying:

"Yes?"

She narrowed her eyes at him, appearing to be contemplating something.

"Enemy or ally?" she asked.

He raised an eyebrow, even though the expression was hidden by his helmet. Asking whether he was an ally instead of attacking him because he was automatically evil? That was new.

"An ally, I suppose." He then turned invisible, flying away; leaving behind a shocked Raven.

* * *

"Who was that? And what did you mean by ghost?" Robin asked.

"Just as I said," Raven said, clenching her fists, "It was a ghost. He didn't give a name. He just flew off after he said he was an ally."

"He said he was an ally?" Robin said. He paused, thinking. "I saw Danny earlier."

"It wasn't him," Raven said. "Ghosts have a certain aura, and even though this ghost's aura was…differnent, it was still that of a ghost's."

Robin sighed. He never thought Jump City would get so….complicated over such a short span of time.

He had some research to do.

* * *

Slade sat at his desk, thinking. The Titans new ally was indeed impressive; delaying the flame monster was no small feat. He clenched his fists. It seemed as if the Titans were beacons for interesting characters. And the newest one was indeed interesting.

He had some research to do.

* * *

**I hoped you liked this chapter. And I'm sorry if you don't like Martha, but the story needed him to work at the Pizza Place, and you can't really get a job anywhere without ID, especially if you're a minor. And if you're wondering about the whole Californians and weather comments, it's completely true. I'm from California, and we're just so used to perfect weather all the time that when it's barely cold, its _freezing._**

**And just to clear some things up, Danny got his ice powers _after _his battle with Dan. He mastered them on his own, without Frostbite or anything. There's no Dani Phantom either. I will try to keep things chronological as much as possible; I might even add a few villians from episodes after Dan. So if he meets someone, for example Undergrowth, it will be as it he had never met him. **

**So anyway, not sure when the next update will be. Probably soon. Until then!**


	6. Chapter 5: What Could Have Been

**Disclaimer: I don't own Danny Phantom or Teen Titans. **

* * *

"Danny, I'm going out. Take care of the store while I'm gone, alright?"

"Alright, Martha, you'll be back before my shift is over, right?" Danny had gotten another job, and today was his second day there.

"Yes, I will. I'm off!" Martha said as she left the restaurant and started up her clunker. Danny rolled his eyes at the loud backfires and Martha's cried, 'come on baby, you can do it!'

Things had calmed down since his last encounter with the Titans. He hadn't gone ghost in a week; all that ice manipulation had left him extremely weak. Right after he left, he flew by a vacant house and vomited for a good solid minute. Then he went back to Martha's car and slept until she shook him awake. He had slept for a good three and a half hours.

Cumo had also come by again, with his disguise collar malfunctioning. He had developed the collar after looking through some of his parent's old blueprints for ectotechnology, then put his own spin on them. Funny, he had always told himself when he was younger that he would never follow his nutjob parents' footsteps; yet here he was, inventing just like his parents did.

When activated, the collar would turn the normally ghostly green dog into a normal looking brown puppy. Which also became very useful, since the ghost dog brought a friendly, happy mood whenever he was around, which calmed his almost always tensed nerves. Martha had warmed up to Cujo as well, but never allowed him into the house.

It made him happy to think he could actually go through a normal, calm week with his new life. As he cleared the table for the customers that just left, he wondered how long it would last.

Back in Amity, he hardly ever had a day that was normal. Well, 'normal' for normal people that is. With all his ghost fighting and schoolwork he could never finish, he barely even had the peace of mind that he had now.

It made him sad to that he would never finish high school or go to college. Contrary to what his teachers believed, he really had tried. It was just impossible trying to juggle ghost fighting, school, and social life. Not that he had much of a social life.

If he'd never gotten his powers, where would he be now? Probably with Sam and Tucker, enjoying summer vacation. His family would still be alive. He might have even started to date Sam…

_Stop thinking like that, _he thought. _What's done is done, and you can't change that. _And who knows what might've happened if he didn't turn on that portal. Someone else might have become half ghost, his parent's could have lost their jobs, heck, even Vlad might've killed his dad and married his mom! But still…

Thousands of possibilities went through his mind, all about 'what could've been.' Living with his family, spending time with his best friends, enjoying a normal life.

Danny shook his head. He couldn't live life with these kind of regrets…

Raven's purple eyes popped into his mind, reminding him of Sam; his shoulders slumped and the temperature in the room lowered.

Whatever that was left of his life.

* * *

**Sorry that this was so short. This is more of a filler than anything; I just wanted to make something angsty while i try to plan things for this story. **

**Please, if you have any suggestions, do not hesitate to tell me. **

**And if you want me to do pairings, i can keep that in mind. otherwise, I'll just stick to the canon pairings and Danny will be alone. **

**I will try to update as soon as I can. But for now, enjoy this short chapter of angsty crap. **


	7. Old Enemies and New Discoveries

**Sorry it's been so long. So here's the next chapter, hope you like it :)**

**Disclaimer: I don't own Teen Titans or Danny Phantom.**

* * *

"_Always me. ALWAYS me. Why can't someone else be the scapegoat of ALL THE BAD LUCK IN THE UNIVERSE for once? Why is it always ME?!"_

Danny narrowly avoided the large missile heading for his head, interrupting his thoughts. Skulker had finally found him; and things weren't looking too good. He was currently fighting in a park, in public, which meant that the Teen Titans were a call away. While it would be nice to have someone take care of the ghost for him, it didn't help that he was targeting him. Which in turn would lead him to an interrogation from Robin, which he really wanted to avoid while he was here in Jump.

"Whelp! Show yourself! I know you are here!" Skulker yelled into the park, currently searching for Danny who was hiding invisibly behind a tree.

Screams erupted throughout the park; many of the people were too paralyzed to move, having never seen anything like the being that floated before them. He really couldn't blame them; he too was pretty paralyzed when he saw his first ghost. Even if it had been himself in the mirror.

Seeing a little girl cower by a bush as he flew toward her, he knew he needed to intervene. He may have been resisting his hero complex by staying indoors a lot, but there was no ignoring it now. He stepped away from the tree, and said:

"Hey rust-butt!" He threw a rock at his head, hitting it with a loud _clang_. "Looking for me?"

"Ghost child," Skulker said with his usual deep, sinister voice, with a strange hint of relief. What was that about?

"What do you want Skulker? This isn't Amity Park, so you know you can't just-"

"Titans, GO!"

Skulker was then assaulted by the Teen Titans attacks, barely dodging them out of surprise. Robin came in close, with his bo staff in hand and almost knocking off his robotic head. Starfire went above, aiming her star-bolts carefully. Raven telekinetically lifted a trashcan and aimed it at Skulker at alarming speeds. Cyborg swung a roundhouse kick; hitting Skulker's flank and making him fly to the ground. Danny had to give credit when credit was earned; these teens were good.

"ENOUGH!" Skulker yelled, turning intangible as Beastboy came running at him as a rhinoceros. He flew above the trees, shooting nets at the levitating Starfire and Raven, and missiles at the boys below.

They would have gotten all the credit if they could fight ghosts.

"_I need to take this fight away from the Titans," _Danny thought. He hid behind a tree to transform, then turned invisible.

"Skulker!" he shouted, bringing the ghost's attention to the empty air from where his voice came from. He flew off, hearing Skulker fly behind him. As soon as he was a good distance away from the park, he turned visible and landed a solid punch to his metal face.

"Listen up Skulker. I don't need or want you here, and I especially don't want to be around any ghosts right now. So get out of my face!" He normally wasn't this angry dealing with ghost other than Vlad, but after _his _ghost problems resulted in killing his family, he wasn't eager to take up fighting them again.

"You'll pay for that!" Skulker said as his ectoskeleton activated a dozen weapons all pointed at him.

"_Whoops. Forgot that he had all those…"_ he thought. He was a bit worried; he hadn't been in a real fight for a few months, and he was pretty much living on pizza nowadays.

He ducked and dodged as the weapons fired at him. Several singed his exposed eyebrows and face, and bullets grazed his skin and tore his jumpsuit. He soared through the air at high speed toward Skulker, fist aiming to decapitate him and throttle the little green blob hidden inside.

"Wait, hold on," Skulker said as he deactivated his weapons. Danny stopped about an inch or two from his face, a confused and irritated expression settling in his features. He quickly zoomed back, crossing his arms as he floated there, waiting for an explanation.

"Attacking you is not the reason I came here, sadly," he said with a regretful voice. "I came to bring you news of your precious town you used to protect."

Danny raised an eyebrow. "Are you serious? You came to tell me about Amity? In case you haven't noticed, I don't have much of a reason to care about it anymore," he said as his face darkened. His ice powers were starting to creep up; his emotions made them hard to control.

"Well I thought you might want to know that the blankaj have overrun the place. They've been killing ghosts left and right."

"Blankaj? Is that Esperanto?"

"Yes. I believe the beast Wulf named them that. They are called the G.I.W. by humans."

"Oh really?"

"Yes."

"Why are you telling me this?"

"Why? Well...because…"

"You actually think I would stop them?" Danny asked, shaking his head as his rage increased. "You made my life a living hell every day. You threatened me, my friends, and every person around me. What in the world made you think I would actually help you?"

Before Dan, he probably would have helped. But honestly, all the time he was spending around Jump, with someone else saving the day, he really didn't want to be involved at all with the hero business. It was an amazing change to just have a normal life at the restaurant.

"If that's all you came for, you can just leave," Danny said as he glared at Skulker. "I'm done dealing with ghosts."

"You _are _a ghost, whelp! You cannot run away from what you are!"

He narrowed his eyes, and they glowed blindingly with anger. He was done dealing with this hunk of metal. "Watch me," he said as flew up to him, bringing back a punch.

* * *

A loud snapping noise was heard through the park, along with a frustrated grunt. Starfire emerged from the crater she had created when she had torn through the net that the flying robot had fired at her. It was surprisingly strong; she had to weaken the net significantly with her starbolts before she was able to rip it.

"Robin? Friends?" she said as she looked around for her teammates. She had been blown back quite a distance.

"Starfire?" She turned to see Robin, slowly limping toward her. He was drenched in what looked to be green sludge.

"Robin! Are you unhurt?" she asked, concerned.

He smiled, albeit a fake smile. "Yeah, I'm fine. My ankle will be alright in a bit." She grinned, happiness filling her attractive features.

"It's good to see you guys are alright," Beastboy said. He had hint of a bruise under his left eye, though seemed fine. He was with a very aggravated looking Raven, who had some scraps of a similar net Starfire was in littering her cloak.

"Who was that? And did he have to fire a missile that dumped freaking _green slime _on us?" Cyborg said as he wiped his face clear of green.

"Better yet, what was it? It looked like a robot, but I've never seen anything like that before…did you see how it glowed?" Robin said.

"It was another ghost," Raven said, as she tried to keep her anger under control. "I knew I should have been more wary around the ice ghost…"

"Wait, ghost? Like...see-through, creepy, possessy ghost?" Beastboy said. "R-Raven, don't joke like that. There is no such thing as ghosts."

"And what do you mean ice ghost? You mean the guy who helped us defeat the flame monster?" Cyborg said.

"He was a ghost. One with ice-based powers. And as a matter of fact, ghosts do exist," Raven replied.

"No they-"

"Look, Beastboy. We need to trust Raven that she knows what she's talking about, and by the looks of it, we're going to need as much information on ghosts as we can get right now," Robin said.

When they arrived back at the tower, Robin immediately sent to work on researching ghosts. While the information Raven had provided was helpful, they were all vague. He needed more.

Putting the word 'ghosts' into the search engine, he looked through files of various websites, dismissing those that were just tourist traps with fake hauntings.

After about an hour, he came across a website for two ghost hunters. They had a few books published about their research, and the website had extensive knowledge about them. According to the website, ghosts were fueled by obsessions, and were all malevolent, non-feeling organisms that were made of ectoplasm. There were pictures of some ghosts, and one he recognized as the ghost they fought in the park. He was labeled "Ghost X" and records of any sightings were all in Amity Park, Illinois. It seemed that all the sightings of ghosts were in the same place.

He decided to search "Amity Park" and was surprised at what came up. The famed most haunted city in America, with daily ghost attacks and sightings. The two ghost hunters were from the city: Madeline and Jack Fenton. Recently deceased…

Recently deceased? Of what?

* * *

Danny jogged up to the pizza place, slightly favoring his right leg. He may have been a little hurt, but the number he did on Skulker didn't even compare. His ectoskeleton was in shambles, and he had thrown the little green blob all the way across the bay. He didn't have a thermos with him, or a ghost portal so it wasn't like he could send him back to the Ghost Zone.

"Danny! You were almost late again!" Martha said as he entered the store. "I know you like that dog, but you don't have to walk him for two hours."

"Yeah, I know. But I'm not late, right?" he said as he put on his uniform. "So no harm done.

"Alright, alright."

When the store opened, the first person through the doors was none other than Robin. Figuring it was too late to hide, he managed a weak smile and walked up to him.

"Hey there, Robin. What brings you here? And where's your team?" he said, slightly confused as to why he was alone.

"They're not here. And I have some questions for you."

"_Oh fuck, here comes the interrogation," _he thought. _"Just be cool, and don't confess you have ghost powers or that you ran away from home to escape a billionaire villain who's obsessed with you for some reason…"_

Wow. What a life he had.

"Sure. Let's go around back."

As he led them around back, he tried thinking up a good excuse. He had the suspicion that Robin thought he had powers, like a metahuman or something. He didn't really want to get involved with the Titans, so what would he say?

They rounded a corner, and he turned to Robin, bracing himself for any question-

"Are you Daniel Fenton?"

Except that one. "How did you-"

"Madeline and Jack Fenton, recently deceased along with their daughter and three others due to an accident with a faulty boiler. They had a son. Ran away about three months ago, hasn't been seen since."

He seethed, not ready to face the fact of his family and friends death head on like that. "And what if I am? Are you just going to announce my family and friends death right to my face and then leave? Or are you going to turn me to the police where they can ship me back to that stupid ghost-crawling city?"

Robin bit his lip, "And I'm sorry for that. But running away isn't-"

"Look, I've got a life here, okay? And frankly, it's a lot better than the one I would go back to over there."

Robin paused, contemplating. Then he said, "Alright, I won't tell anyone. Yet. Anyway, I was going to ask you something else though."

"What about?"

"About ghosts," he said. "There have been a few around here lately, and no one knows much about them."

Danny paused. Then he said carefully, "I don't know as much about ghosts as my parents did. Both me and my sister had our doubts they even existed for a while. And of course the _general public_ mocked my parents for what they practiced in the first place." His face went into a slight snarl, thinking about all the crap their family got from the city.

"Anything you've got about them is fine," Robin said, and took out some papers. "Specifically on these ghosts."

Danny took the papers, looking through them. One was Skulker, labeled "Ghost X". It had a blurry picture of him, with a little information. The next one didn't have a picture, but was labelled "Invisobill". Great. Now he had to give him information about his ghost counterpart? Joy.

"This one's a hunter. He was seen with Phantom a lot in Amity, but all that's known about him is that he seeks rare and dangerous creatures to hunt." He put that paper aside, and took out the one on him. It didn't have much information, just that he was extremely dangerous and its abilities are not recorded. "This one, Invisobill, not much is known about him. He...fought other ghosts a lot, but when he wasn't fighting he was never seen." The less he knew about Phantom, the better. He liked it here in Jump City; he didn't want to leave just yet.

Robin took the papers back, and nodded curtly to Danny. He was about to leave when-

"Wait, hold on." Danny took the papers back, taking out a pen. He crossed out both the names, then writing "Skulker" and "Phantom" to replace them.

"Those names aren't accurate. You should at least know what to call them now," he said, handing them back to Robin.

Robin smiled, and thanked him. He left the restaurant leaving Danny to himself.

The one thing he thought was, _"what have I gotten myself into?"_

* * *

**So that's that. Hope you liked it and I'll try to update a little sooner this time :)**


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